Maiden King

Trainer Robert Hess, Jr. had filly Rev Her Up rarin' to go

Garrett Gomez is good, but he’s not that good.

Horseplayers, however, continue to bet Gomez in maiden sprints like they’ve already read tomorrow’s paper. These days, any contender Gomez rides — like Delahoosee on Thursday and #8 Dixie Lucky on Friday — is likely to be pounded to less than 3-ro-2. And these horse don’t look much better than the other nags.

For example on Jan. 2, #9 Sky Marni finished just 1-3/4 lengths behind Dixie Lucky when they competed together — and Sky Marni was steadied two times in the stretch. Yet, Sky Marni went off at 9-to-2 in Friday’s eighth, while Dixie Lucky was bet to 7-to-5.  The payout was almost four times greater for Sky Marni, and did Dixie Lucky have a four times better chance of winning because Gomez was riding?

I think not.

Even #4 Rev Her Up, the horse who won Friday’s race, ran a 66 Beyer Speed Figure in her last. And that compares favorably to the 64 that Dixie Lucky ran in her only start.

Anyway in this race, Dixie Lucky finished a well-beaten fifth and was never anywhere close to the front, while Rev Her Up and Sky Marni finished 1-2.

Iwagered $200 on #1 Count’n Tears a 7-to-1 second timer, $150 on Sky Marni, and $200 on #2 Tripped Fuse, a 19-to-1 shot making her debut.

To watch a replay of this race, go to calracing.com